Confirming the problem

If you have no internet access at all, you'll first want to determine whether or not you have a physical connection between you and Sonic. This physical connection is referred to as "sync". The easiest way to check for sync is to look on your residential gateway for an indication of what the Broadband light is doing. A solid green broadband light indicates you have sync. A blinking light indicates no sync.

If the Broadband light on your residential gateway is blinking and does not remain solid, this is a No Sync issue. Please read below for Sonic's suggested troubleshooting steps that solve the majority of "No Sync" issues. If you see a solid green Broadband light, see our Troubleshooting Sync-No-Surf section. If the Broadband light will occasionally stay solid, but drop out at times, see our Intermittent Sync Troubleshooting section.

Summary

Here's a quick list of useful steps to try. If you're interested in reading more about the troubleshooting step, click on it to read the full description below. If you are able to try some of the below troubleshooting steps but not all of them, that's okay! Anything you've already tried provides our support team with valuable information, and helps us solve your problem faster.

Did I fix it?

After trying one of the below troubleshooting steps, walk back to your residential gateway to see of the Broadband light goes solid after the changes you've made. Please allow up to 5 minutes after making changes for the Broadband light to go solid.

If the Broadband light has gone solid, but you still can't get online, please try rebooting your computer, tablet, or phone one more time! Sometimes, it takes a reboot for your device to notice the internet has returned.

Installation date has not passed

As soon as we know when your service will be installed, we'll send you an email with that date. If the date has not passed, we are still working on it!

We don't recommend proceeding with further steps until after your due date. As we work to build your internet connection, the results of some of these tests will change. You will see reliable results only after we've finished connecting and provisioning your connection.

Restart your Residential Gateway

Unplugging the power cable from your residential gateway for thirty seconds, then turning it back on can often clear errors that prevent it from establishing an internet connection. When the RG starts back up, it can take up to ten minutes for it to find the signal for the first time. Subsequent reboot times will be faster because the RG remembers the settings that worked last time.

Check the phone cord

Re-seat the cable

One of the simplest causes of losing internet in a "no sync" scenario is the cable becoming dislodged from the jack. If the cable is bad, sometimes the connector can become loose. Other times, a person or animal may have tripped over the cable and not noticed. Many times, we find that just unplugging the phone cord and plugging it back in fixes the problem! Be sure to do this at the jack, at the filter, and at the RG itself. Listen for the distinct "snap" that the cord makes as it goes into place, letting you know you've made a firm connection. If you are unable to hear this sound after re-seating the phone cable several times, consider replacing the phone cable.

After plugging the cable back in on both ends, wait five minutes to see if the Broadband light turns solid green again.

Replace the cable

Phone cables go bad all the time. The copper wires inside the cable can be more fragile than the plastic shielding, so even a cable that looks fine may be damaged. If you have a spare phone cable at home, please try using another one. Due to interference issues, Sonic recommends using a phone cable under fifteen feet in length.

Check your phone

If you have a telephone handy, check for dialtone on your Fusion DSL line. For the most reliable results, check for dialtone at the jack that your residential gateway normally plugs into. If you hear dialtone, that's a great sign! That indicates the circuit between your RG and Sonic is in tact, and you're very close to having an internet connection again. If you do not hear dialtone, try other phone jacks in the house. If you are able to find an alternate jack in the house that does have dialtone, try moving your RG there. If the Broadband light goes solid at an alternate jack, you can use your internet access from there and contact Sonic Support to repair the phone jack.

Hearing Static?

If you're hearing static on the phone line, this indicates a significant problem with the phone line. This can be caused by a wiring problem or a filter issue. To narrow down the source of the disturbance, unplug the power to the back of your residential gateway.

If the static on your phone line goes away when you unplug the RG, this indicates a filter issue. Reconnect the power to the RG and wait for the static to return, so you can find the problematic device by process of elimination. You'll need to remove each phone, fax machine, and all other devices that connect to your phone line one at a time until you hear the static go away. Once your line sounds clear again, you've found the problematic device! The device causing the static likely just needs a replacement filter. Contact Sonic Support, and we'll be happy to send you one.

If the static on your phone line does not go away when you unplug the residential gateway, then we've identified the problem as a wiring issue. If possible, move the phone that you used to listen for static to a different phone jack. If you only hear static at one jack, you may be able to work around the problem by plugging your RG into another jack while you're contacting Sonic Support to fix the problem.

Check your filters

Filters are small, tan boxes that filter the DSL signal out of other phone jacks. Incorrectly installed filters are one of the most common causes of loss of internet issues with DSL.

Make sure you have filters

You'll want to make sure each jack that connects to your Fusion DSL telephone number has a filter on it. Please be sure to use the filters provided in your Sonic self-installation kit. Filters from your previous internet provider may not work correctly with your Sonic service, due to potential differences in the underlying technology. You'll want to filter every device that connects to this phone number. This includes:

Fax machines

Some alarm systems

Some credit card machines

Some satellite TV receivers

Answering machines

Make sure your residential gateway is not filtered

Your residential gateway should never be plugged into a filter, but you can plug the RG into a splitter if you need to share one phone jack for multiple devices. One splitter is included in the self-installation kit, but be sure to plug the phone cable from your residential gateway into the DSL side of the filter and not the Phone side. Using the wrong end of the splitter can prevent you from establishing an internet connection.

Make sure your splitter has not gone bad

DSL Splitters can go bad on occasion. If you are using a splitter to connect both the residential gateway and your phone to wall jack, try disconnecting the splitter and plugging your RG directly into the wall jack. If you determine your splitter has gone bad, contact Sonic Support so we can send you another!

Try another jack

If dialtone sounds normal at the jack you're using for the residential gateway, there could still be a problem with that jack. DSL signal can still be interfered with by wiring issues that don't affect dialtone. If more than one phone jack is connected to your Sonic telephone number, try moving the RG to another jack. You'll need to bring the RG itself, the phone cord and the power cable with you. When you plug it all in at the new jack, make sure to first disconnect any filters already in place.

At the new jack, give the device up to 10 minutes to establish a connection. If the Broadband light goes solid at the new location, you've got a working internet connection! We're still happy to come out to investigate the broken jack, but you'll have internet while you wait.

If the light just continues to blink, you can move on to testing at the MPOE, or give our support team a call! Even if you're not able to get internet access at the other jack, you've still done a lot to expedite the troubleshooting process with our support team, and we'll be able to move quickly to the next step. Thank you!

Test at your MPOE

Testing at the Main Point of Entry, the dividing line between internal and external wiring, can be difficult. However, it is the single best thing you can do to expedite a repair. A different wiring technician mayneed to go out to your site to fix an internal wiring problem than the technician needed for an external issue. If you are able to test at your MPOE, you have the chance to reduce your downtime by 50% or more.

Something may have happened to your building's wiring. To make sure that your no-sync problem is not an internal wiring problem, you may want to try testing at the test jack, located at the "Main Point of Entry" for the phone line. MPOEs can look very different house by house, but you can find some example pictures of different MPOE types here.

You'll want to see if the same symptom (hearing static, for instance) is the same at the test jack as it is inside the house. If you can confirm that the symptom is the same at the test jack, we can skip right to fixing the external wiring when you contact Sonic Support.

Contact Support

If you've attempted the listed troubleshooting steps and still have not resolved the problem, please contact Sonic Support!. Be sure to let them know the troubleshooting steps you've already tried, so we don't ask you to repeat anything.